GinKing wins US distribution with help from DIT

Surrey-based drinks producer GinKing has won a £90k export order from a US wine merchant.

GinKing secured the order following a meeting with Plume Ridge at Prowein, which it was able to attend thanks to a grant secured through the Department for International Trade (DIT).

The order, arranged through California-based importer Plume Ridge, will see the company’s lower alcohol product stocked in some 350 Cost Plus World Market specialty/import stores across the US.

The additional sales should see the company’s turnover grow by 10%, it said.

“The recent US deal is a really exciting step for us on our exporting journey. Being a very young company, our turnover is always increasing, and exports are an integral part of this growth, currently accounting for 12% of total sales," said John Worontschak, founder and managing director of Ginking.

“The DIT has helped our small business to grow internationally with useful face-to-face meetings, introductions to UK embassies, industry data on various markets and of course this grant which indirectly led to securing the US deal.

“Exporting is an obvious way of diversifying risk and I would encourage other UK companies to contact DIT and see how they can support with overseas growth.”

Liz Truss, secretary of state for international trade, said: “The UK ‘ginassaince’ is booming with companies like GinKing driving its success and capitalising on the global demand for quality British-made alcohol.

“Distillers across the country should be grasping these international opportunities and showing the rest of the world that the UK is ready to trade.”

Founded in 2017, GinKing produces a blend of English wine with London dry gin.

It currently exports to several markets including Switzerland, Germany, Iceland, Austria and Canada.